


Marauders

by Narsil5



Category: Harry Potter - Fandom, Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-13
Updated: 2019-02-06
Packaged: 2019-08-23 00:03:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 9,077
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16607999
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Narsil5/pseuds/Narsil5
Summary: The Marauders years at Hogwarts. Fairly light-hearted.





	1. Remus

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marauders years ant Hogwarts, fairly light hearted. This is the train ride to the school from Remus' POV.

Remus Lupin looked out the window at his waving parents. They looked so happy that he was able to go to Hogwarts, they never expected him to. While excited, Remus was also a bit nervous. He had never had any friends, due to his "condition", and he didn't intend to make any, lest his secret get out.  
Suddenly a head popped in. It had messy black hair and hazel eyes framed by rectangular glasses. A lopsided grin stretched across it.  
"Hey!" said the boy, still smiling, "Mind if I sit here? Everywhere else is full."  
"Wha- Oh, yeah, sure."  
"Cool. Thanks."  
The boy sat across from Remus and made himself comfortable, stretching his legs out along the seat so he was propped against the door.  
"What's your name, anyway?" the boy asked  
"Remus Lupin, yours?"  
"James Potter. Do you like Quidditch?"  
"I've never played, but my dad took me to a game once. I'm not really a sports person, but I read a lot about pretty much anything." "Cool. I want to play, but you're not allowed to play 'till second year. What do you like to read? "I like stuff on magical creatures, Newt Scamander's books are good. What do you think your favorite class will be?" "I always thought Transfiguration would be cool, but my dad says Potions is fun. What would REALLY be cool is crossing the two, so you could Transfigure things with a potion."  
"Actually, there is something like that, it's called the Polyjuice Potion, it can turn you into a different person for one hour per dose."  
"Really? Cool! Wonder if I could use it for any pranks..." "Absolutely not! Any instructions are going to be in the restricted section, and there's no chance you're going to get in there for a semi-legal potion. Forget it." Remus said. He didn't know why, but he did not want this kid expelled.  
"Oh. OK." James replied, looking startled. Yet another head popped in. This one also had black hair, but it was slightly wavy and hung down just past his ears. He had grey eyes and was a bit taller than James.  
"Did I hear something about pranks? I would love to get some in on the Slytherins, that's my family's house, probably where I'm going to go too. Also, can I sit here? I've been pacing the train for about half an hour now, and I cannot find anywhere to sit."  
James looked at Remus. "It's your car, you were here first." he said, shrugging  
"Sure" said Remus  
"Thank you." the boy said. "My name's Sirius Black, what are yours?"  
"I'm Remus Lupin, and he's-"  
"James Potter" finished James. "Why don't you have someplace to sit? Didn't your parents reserve a seat for you or something?  
"They did, I let a few second years have it. My family's traditions are screwed up. Never liked them. They are all a bunch of pretentious prigs, anyway." Sirius answered. "If you want me to leave, I can." He sounded a little bit sad about it.  
"No, that's ok, I'm sorry." James apologized "You said you wanted to prank Slytherin, but you were also going to be put there. Whaddaya mean by that?"  
"Well, my whole family has been in there, why shouldn't I?" answered Sirius  
"Your family doesn't dictate your House..." Remus interjected  
"You haven't met my family." said Sirius, smiling ruefully. "Anyway, what House do you reckon you will be in?"  
"I don't know." Remus had been wondering about that. He thought Ravenclaw would be a good fit, but maybe the kids would figure out the secret..."I think I'm just gonna wait till I try on the Sorting Hat."  
"I'm going to Gryffindor, 'Where Dwell the Brave of Heart'." said James proudly.  
A loud snort was heard outside the door.  
James sat straight up and said:  
"You got a problem with that?"  
"Only if you prefer brawn over brain!" sneered the voice, as its owner stepped into view. It was a scrawny boy whose robes hung off his skinny frame. He had greasy black hair (what was it with the black hair?) that hung down to his shoulders.  
"What's your name?" James asked, now glaring at the boy.  
"Snape."  
"Snape?" said James, sounding incredulous.  
"Severus Snape."  
" Well, Snivellus, I suggest you find a different compartment." James stated coldly  
"I didn't ask your permission, and anyway, why would I want to sit here?"  
"Because-"  
"Hey, Sev, I found a compartment with a couple second years who say we can sit with them if we want." a red-haired girl with green eyes poked her head in. "Oh, who's this?  
"No one, just some stuck up prigs." said Snape.  
Remus hardly thought that was fair, as so far, he had only talked to James.  
"Oh. Okay, then. Let's go."  
The two of them left.  
Remus broke the silence.  
"Well that was weird."  
A few minutes later, another head popped into the doorway. This one belonged to a slightly chubby boy with blond hair and watery blue eyes.  
"H-hi... Do...Do you mind if I... if I sit here with you guys? It's just that... everywhere else..."  
"Is full?" Remus answered, noticing how nervous the boy looked. He figured that if these boys were his friends now, he might as well have one that looked as scared as Remus felt. "Sure, make yourself comfortable. What's your name?"  
"Peter Pettigrew, what's yours?" said Peter, visibly relaxing.  
"I'm Remus Lupin-"  
"I'm James Potter-"  
"And I'm Sirius Black." 

After a while, the conversation turned back to the Sorting. 

 

 

  
“So, James is going for Gryffindor, Sirius thinks he’s going into Slytherin but doesn’t want to, I’m not sure yet, and Peter wants to go...” Remus said.  
“I think Hufflepuff would be good.” said Peter thoughtfully, “I hear the dorms are by the kitchens. And why does Sirius think he’s going to be in Slytherin?”  
“Because my entire family’s been in there, and if I’m not, it will be the surprise if the century.” said Sirius.  
“I don’t think you’re going to be in Slytherin, mate.” said James 

“Why not?” 

“Because Slytherin’s supposed to be the house of cunning, and anyone who walked up and straight up asked to be in a certain carriage rather than trying to talk us into it probably isn’t going for Slytherin. That’s more ‘Brave and Bold’ than ‘Cunning’ if you ask me.” stated James.  
Sirius looked thoughtful for a minute, then said;  
“Yeah, I guess you’re right.” Sirius said, looking a bit more cheerful. “I did not think of that before.”  
The rest of the ride went smoothly, with James and Sirius buying snacks off the trolley, much to Remus and Peter’s enjoyment. The two shared a rather ridiculous love of chocolate. 

After the four and a half hours of the train ride were over, the boys clambered out of the train and onto the grass just off the boarding platform. Remus had never felt this excited in his life.  
“Firs’ years over ‘ere! Firs’ years over ‘ere!” A loud voice sounded across the field. “Firs’ years over ‘ere!”  
To Remus’s surprise, a large man with a bushy beard strode across the clearing.  
“Righ’... I’m Hagrid, an’ you lot ride over the lake wi’ me on the boats.” he said, gesturing at the group of first years that were huddled together against the cold.  
The boys pulled their cloaks tighter and moved with the crowd of nervous first years over towards the boats. Everyone was pushing and shoving, trying desperately to get up front, to be the first to see the legendary castle. As it turned out, the castle wasn’t in sight yet. 

 

  
Seeing that Remus, James, Sirius and Peter were already together, Hagrid said “Now you four have got it righ’. Four to a boat, that's it.” He ushered them towards the first boat, which the boys clambered into, thrilled that they got to go first.  
As they clambered into the boat, Pete slipped and tumbled into the lake. Seeing that Hagrid was helping another group of four, the remaining three boys scrambled to pull Peter back in; however, this endeavour only succeeded in a lot of splashing.  
Suddenly, a large tentacle shot out of the depths, propelling Peter up, then setting him gently back into the boat.  
The boys sat there in shock.  
They had not anticipated that.  
“Well, I see yeh’ foun’ the giant squid.” said Hagrid, coming up behind them. “I foun’ ‘im on a Muggle beach when he were only ‘bout as long as my arm.”  
“I didn’t know this place had a squid.” mused James.  
“Don’t get any ideas,” warned Remus “Or I will hex you.” 

 

Hagrid shoved all the boats out onto the lake, then hopped into the last and slightly bigger one. He procured an oar, seemingly out of nowhere. As Hagrid paddled himself up to the front of the hoard of boats, Remus worried about how on earth they were going to get across, as he couldn’t find any oars. 

This problem was soon remedied, as the small vessels started to glide across the water. Remus almost kicked himself, thinking that it should have been obvious that they were magical. He was going to have to get used to this. Since his mother was born a Muggle, she had never really used magic around the house. His father would sometimes show him basic tricks, but not often, because he didn’t want Remus to get used to magic. No one ever thought Remus would be able to attend Hogwarts. 

Needless to say, it was a pleasant surprise when Dumbledore turned up. Remus's parents tried to deter him at the door, but the old headmaster managed to get in -Mr. Lupin swore he had no idea how Dumbledore did that- and started playing Gobstones with Remus. 

As the boats turned slightly, all the kids gasped. A huge castle sprawled across a cliffside, windows glowing with a flickering light that suggested many candles. As the water gates drew closer, Remus could see shapes silhouetted against the glass panes. He assumed these were the teachers, and he wondered who taught what. He knew A lady called McGonagall taught Transfiguration, but that was about all he knew. 

 

Once inside the castle, the first years headed up a stairwell to the entrance to the Great Hall. A tall woman with her hair in a tight bun. Her lips were tight, her clothes were crisp. Everything about her said ‘strict’.  
“Good evening, students.” her voice was as crisp as her clothes, and she had a slight Scottish accent. “I am Professor McGonagall, Deputy Headmistress.”  
‘Ah’ Remus thought. ‘that’s a face for a name.’  
“In a few minutes you will enter the Great Hall of Hogwarts. These halls have been a respected part of wizarding society for over a thousand years. As new students, I expect that you shall uphold this reputation.” 

“You may enter.” she finished formally, and as she waved her wand, the giant doors opened. 

A storm of clapping thundered across the hall.


	2. Sirius

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sirius' POV of the Sorting

Sirius was sweating. 

Nobody noticed among the commotion, but he was so nervous about his Sorting that he had sweat pouring off him like a waterfall.  
It was disgusting. 

All his life, Sirius had been told that Slytherin was his House, the only acceptable option. He had ever contradicted this view, he was a Black. It made sense.  
Sirius wasn’t necessarily fond of this gross body function. His family found uncleanliness revolting, and if either Sirius or his younger brother Regulus got a speck of dirt on them or their starched clothes, it was immediate baths all around. Whenever the Black parents were out on whatever pure blood meetings they went to, Sirius taught himself to run and climb trees, because that’s what he saw Muggle children doing, and it looked fun. 

Speaking of clothes, Sirius’s cloak collar seemed to be getting tighter around his neck. And what was that odd fluttery feeling in his stomach? And- 

“Nervous much mate?” James asked, breaking in to Sirius’s thoughts, which Sirius thought was very rude. 

“Pardon?” Sirius answered, slightly indignant. Nervous? Him? 

 

 

“Yes, nervous.” said James, matter-of-factly, “Nervous, because you don’t want to be put in Slytherin, but you also don’t want to tick off your all-so-powerful family, because your scared of them.” 

“How did you know all that?” 

 

“Oh, I have my ways.” James swiftly deflected the question. “Any way, it’s all right. Even I’m nervous. Me!” 

Sirius laughed, then gulped, because at that moment- 

“BLACK, SIRIUS!” sounded across the room. 

 

Sirius’s lungs constricted, his legs seemed to shake, and every part of his brain said, “NO! Don’t go up! You can still bolt!” But, not wanting to be deemed a coward, Sirius walked gingerly up to the chair holding the battered old hat. Sirius wished he had been paying more attention during its song, maybe it told the requirements for each House. 

As Sirius sat upon the chair, McGonagall placed the Hat upon Sirius’s head, she gave him a small smile. Well, the corners of her mouth twitched upwards any way. Sirius figured she did to all the nervous first years, but it helped all the same. 

“Hm...” buzzed a voice in Sirius’s ear. “Hm...” 

“Very interesting.” murmured the voice. “Very interesting indeed.” 

“Who are you?” whispered Sirius 

 

 

“I’m the Sorting hat, of course.” said the Hat. “Who are you?” 

“You know who I am, McGonagall just shouted my name.” 

“Your name isn’t all of you, you know.” retorted the hat. “But it’s not my job to tell you that. It’s my job to tell you your House. Now, where do you want to go?” 

“I get to choose?” marveled Sirius. By now, he had learned that to talk to the Hat while wearing it, all you had to do was think. 

“Well, I don’t usually tell people this.” the Hat said. “Only the difficult ones, because they usually have interesting ideas on where you go.” 

“Oh.” thought Sirius. “Well, in that case, anywhere but Slytherin, I guess.” 

“Interesting. You are an interesting one. You do realize that Slytherins aren’t necessarily evil?” 

“I know that,” thought Sirius quickly “It’s just my family wants me to be there, and-” 

And what? He wanted to rebel, but he was afraid of his family. He wanted freedom, but what would it do for him on breaks? 

“Well, in that case, I know just the place for you.” stated the Hat. 

Sirius held his breath. 

 

 

“GRYFFINDOR!” screamed the Hat. 

The red-and-gold decorated table erupted into cheers as Sirius hopped off the stool, grinning harder than he had ever grinned in his life. Looking in the crowd of standing first years and spotted James, who appeared to have sprained his wrist from clapping, because he was shaking it a bit. They two boys made eye contact and grinned. 

Sirius flopped down on the bench, hardly noticing the claps on the back and the words that said “Congratulations throwing off the family name, kid” from the sixth and seventh years. 

The rest of the Sorting passed in a blur. He remembered seeing James clapping so hard he hurt his wrist, and Remus and Peter grinning, but the rest of the ceremony was fuzzy. He saw that Remus was Sorted into Gryffindor, which he looked pleased but slightly shocked. Peter also made Gryffindor, but the hat took a bit of time deciding on him. Sirius remembered that that was called a Hat-Staller. Now that he thought about it, he was one too, he supposed. Interesting. 

The next time Sirius looked up from the table, James was striding up to the hat, a look of determined anticipation on his face. The hat had barely been set upon his head when- 

“GRYFFINDOR!” screamed the Hat. 

Sirius felt happy about that, happier than he had about either Remus or Peter, who were now sitting beside him and clapping. Both of their Sortings were interesting, with Remus being a surprisingly fast Gryffindor. Sirius supposed that there were different types of Gryffindors. Peter took almost three minutes. Sirius remembered that that was called a Hatstall. 

 

 

Now that he thought about it, he had been one too. Interesting. Until James suggested differently on the train, Sirius was just going to go to Slytherin, no questions asked. Sirius was pretty happy, but he was still a bit worried about his family. One bridge at a time, he supposed. 

With the final “Adam, Zakiaus!” from McGonagall and a “HUFFLEPUFF!” from the Hat, the Sorting was over. Dumbledore stood up. 

“I would like to say a few words before we eat.” the ancient Headmaster said. 

This remark was greeted by suppressed smiles from the older students and suppressed groans from the first years. The food was tempting, and Peter was looking slightly guilty, with what looked like half a chicken stuffed in his mouth. He swallowed with some difficulty. 

Dumbledore cleared his throat and said: 

“Nibble! Fluff! Dollop! Squelch!” 

“Let the feast begin!” 

Sirius began eating with a gusto that he had never had before. One didn’t really go hungry in the Black household, but you didn’t eat excess, either. Here, Sirius was free to eat whatever he felt like, which, in this case was a rather large steak, hot pumpkin juice, and a ridiculous amount of Jell-O. 

“You all right?” James asked 

 

“Yeah, why wouldn’t I be?” Sirius replied, slightly befuddled. Why did they want to know what he was feeling? 

 

 

  
“Well,” joined Remus, “Your family’s probably not going to be very happy, and you don’t have anywhere else to go on breaks, what are you going to do?” Peter nodded. 

“Oh. That’s no big deal.” Sirius shrugged. “They’ll get over it.” 

“All right, if you say so.” James said. “Let’s go up to the tower, the prefect is waving at us.” 

Peter grabbed one last slice of pie and then jogged to catch up with the others. They all walked out of the hall and followed the prefect up the staircases, which apparently moved. Sirius was realizing he knew less of this place than he thought. 

“Alright, five to a dorm, we are going to have one dorm with only four people. Any volunteers?” asked the prefect. 

James’ hand shot up. “We would!” 

“Who’s we?” asked the prefect, looking confused. 

“Us,” retorted James, gesturing at Sirius, Remus, and Peter. “Me and my friends.” 

Sirius gave a start. Friends? Blacks didn’t have friends, as Sirius’ parents constantly rubbed in his face. Blacks had relations. People that were acceptable to hang out with, and those who were not. So far, this new school year was taking everything his family had told him and turning it upside down. 

Sirius grinned. 

 

 

The boys signed the room assignment sheet and clambered up the stairs to the boys’ dormitories. At the top of the stairs the half circle of doors that made up the first-year dorm entrances. James looked at the piece of paper that the prefect (whose name was apparently Davie Gudgeon) had handed him. 

“Dorm Number Seven,” said Sirius, reading over James’ shoulder. Sirius glanced over the doors, then let his eyes rest on the last door. 

A crooked brass seven hung from a silver hook, right in the center of the rectangular door. The old wooden door had a few deep scratches, but it was shining as if it had just been waxed. Sirius supposed it had, the castle obviously was taken care of by someone other than the irritable-looking janitor they had seen glaring at them as they walked up the stairs to the dormitories. 

Since it was a Wednesday, this gave Sirius no time to get acquainted with the castle before classes started the next day. 

“Wish we had a map.” Sirius muttered, as he brushed his teeth 

Next to him, Remus spat out his frothy toothpaste. “Yeah, that would be nice. Wonder if we could make one.”  
James looked up from his inspection of the Gryffindor quidditch banner that was Spello-Taped to the wall. “Say, that’s not a bad idea. Anyone here know how to draw? It doesn’t have to be perfect.” 

Sirius hesitated, then said “I can draw a little bit.” 

“Really? All I can draw is stick figures.” James said, looking impressed. That was not an expression Sirius often saw. "Think you could work on a map as we figure stuff out?” 

 

 

 

“Sure,” replied Sirius, smiling. “What classes do we have tomorrow? We can use the dorm as a starting point. Does anyone remember how we got from the entrance to the Great Hall, and from the Great Hall to the Dorms?” 

“I do.” said Peter, quietly, from beside the sinks. 

“Do you have a photographic memory, Peter?” inquired Remus. 

“What’s that?” 

“When you remember something, does it look like a picture in your head?” 

“Oh, yeah, I can do that, but only if I concentrate. I didn’t want to get lost tomorrow. Can’t everyone do that?” Peter answered. 

“No, it’s not common at all.” Remus told him. “It’s very cool.” 

“Really?” marveled Peter. Sirius got the impression that Peter didn’t consider himself ‘cool’ at all, and finding someone wo did was a new and gratifying experience. 

“We have a half-hour before bed,” stated James, “You guys want to work on the map a bit?” 

 

 

  
Several minutes and a few discussions about James’ Quaffle pajamas later, (“They are not dorky, Sirius! They embody my passion for the sport!”), the boys were sitting on the end of Peter’s bed, with Peter describing things while Sirius sketched out a decent, if imperfect, map. James and Remus watched, meanwhile making plans for when they started learning magic. 

“We could put a concealment charm on it, and give it a passcode or something so only we can get into it.” James said excitedly. “And we can enchant it to see the moving staircases shifts, and-” 

“Slow down,” laughed Remus, “We still have schoolwork, and I personally am not helping until I have finished until I amd done with my homework.” 

“But it might take ages before they teach us the enchantments we need for this project!” whined James, looking like a sad puppy. 

“Well, maybe I can find supplemental books to help us, but I won’t do anything to help with you guys’ map until you’ve finished your homework.” 

 

“Fine.” 

 

“Alright, you lot, lights out!” called Davie from down the hall. 

Sirius blew out the candles and crawled into bed. 

“Did anyone find the class list?” whispered James' voice from the bed beside Sirius. 

 

 

“I did,” whispered Remus "We can walk together, and Pete can remember the routes we take, right Pete?” 

“Right!” squeaked Peter, whose bunk was on the far right. Sirius had claimed the far left, with James and Remus in the two middle bunks. 

Sirius’ last thought as he drifted off to sleep was how different these boys were from all the Black cousins.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please leave head cannons you would like me to put in here in your comments, also leave 'reviews'. THANK YOU FOR READING!!!!!


	3. Peter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> First day at Hogwarts. Peter's POV

Peter woke to someone shaking him. 

“C’mon, Pete, we have classes in an hour!” 

The unfamiliar voice startled Peter into full consciousness. Looking up, he saw a face whose rectangular glasses were slightly askew. 

The previous day’s memories came flooding back to Peter, who, though normally not a morning person, smiled and rolled out of bed. 

“Morning James!” he said excitedly. “How’d you sleep?” 

 

  
“Pretty well. You?” 

“Same.” answered Peter, peeling back the layers of clothes in his trunks in order to find his favorite pair of socks. He was pretty sure they were good luck, because when he wore them on test days, he got A’s. 

 

Having found the socks, Peter pulled them out and began putting them on. They were a sickly yellow color, with a couple holes in them. 

“What’s with the socks?” Sirius asked, leaning against the bathroom doorway. He had his robes on over his pajama pants, which were jet black. 

“They’re lucky! Whenever I wear them stuff goes really well!” Peter explained, feeling more excited by the second. He had cool friends, a magical school, and lucky socks. There was no way this day could go wrong. 

“Oh, cool.” Sirius started walking over to his bed. When he reached Peter’s bed, however, he stopped. 

“Uh, listen... this might sound weird, but can I borrow a sock?” Sirius whispered, checking to make sure James really had gone into the bathroom. 

“What?” Peter replied, bewildered as to why this confident boy would want his sock. 

“Well, it’s first day of classes, so I’m a bit nervous and need all the luck I can get.” said Sirius. 

“Do you mean to tell me that even a Gryffindor is nervous about something?” Peter asked. 

 

 

“Well, yeah, the definition of ‘brave’ isn’t not being afraid, it’s doing the thing anyway.” Sirius answered philosophically. “Anywho, can I borrow a sock? Just for today?” 

Peter laughed and tossed him a sock. 

“I’m afraid of worms.” he said. 

“Sorry?” queried Sirius, looking puzzled. 

“Worms. I thought I wasn’t going to be in Gryffindor because of worms. They scare the heck out of me.” 

Sirius laughed, then said; 

“Sorry for laughing, it’s just really funny, because my brother has the same problem.” 

“Really?” asked Peter, marveling at the fact that he was not the only one who feared worms above all else. 

“Really.” Sirius affirmed. “And you know what? I’m deadly afraid of heights.” 

Peter smiled, thinking of all the times he had flown in the Quidditch Quafflettes, on the brooms that only soared a few feet off the ground. His mother had pulled him out of the game when he fell and broke his arm shortly after his eighth birthday. Peter wasn’t any good, and by the time he had stopped playing he wasn’t enjoying it as much. 

 

 

“Guess I'm OK then.” 

As he waited for Remus to get out of the shower, Peter grabbed his robes. Standing in his mismatched socks and striped pajamas, Peter shuffled over to the unoccupied sink, next to Remus, who was just spitting out his toothpaste. 

Remus started to comb his damp hair. James was singing the Hogwarts song, and the shower magnified his horrible singing voice. Remus turned and grinned at Peter, then scooched over so Peter could have easier access to the second sink. 

Peter smiled gratefully as he squeezed some toothpaste onto his toothbrush. Remus finished combing his hair, then pulled a planner out of his bag. 

Peter had already figured out that Remus was the organized one of the group. This was evidenced by the fact that Remus was already dressed and packed for the day. 

When he finished his turn at the sink, Peter let Sirius use the one he had been using. By this time, James was out of the shower and dressed, ready except for his hair, which still looked as if he had slept on it funny, despite the fact that it was a bit wet. 

“Aren’t you going to brush your hair?” asked Peter shyly. He was a bit intimidated by James, who seemed not to be afraid of anything. 

“Who? Me?” answered James, looking shocked. “Why on earth would I do that?” 

“Because you look like you just went through an Erumpent attack, mate, that’s why.” chimed in Sirius. 

“This,” retorted James, “Is what cultured people call ‘tousled’ and I look great in it.” 

 

  
“Sirius is right, you do look like you just went through an erumpent attack.” commented Remus. 

 

“You are all just jealous.” declared James. “And to answer Pete’s question, no, no I am not going to brush my hair.” 

Peter shrugged and grabbed his stuff for the shower. 

 

Once he was out and dressed, Peter ran a comb through his hair and stuffed a few books in his bag. He hastily pulled on a pair of shoes, the ran down the stairs to catch up with the others. 

“Ready Peter?” asked Remus 

“Yep!” 

“Alright, get ready to remember!” James cheered 

“That sounds like a cheesy line from a book.” Sirius snorted. 

“Do you have a better one?” 

“No, but that was truly terrible.” 

“Oh, hush.” 

A few minutes later, the boys trooped into the Great Hall for breakfast. The tables were less decorated than they had been the previous night, but the food looked, if possible, even better than it had last night. 

Huge stacks of pancakes were distributed evenly down the long Gryffindor table. In between them were bottles of syrup, some fruit, and yogurt. 

 

 

Peter slid onto the bench, with Remus on his right and James on his left. Sirius plonked down next to James and started placing pancakes onto his plate. 

Peter followed suit. He looked at the choices of syrup that stood before him. Grabbing the maple, (So far as Peter was concerned, that was the only option.), Peter began to pour it onto his stack of pancakes.  
As he wolfed down the buttermilk-y goodness, Peter ran his eyes over his class schedule. Well, more accurately, Remus’s class schedule. Remus was being nice enough to share, although he looked a bit preoccupied this morning. Peter decided not to push his luck with heartfelt conversations today. 

After the four wandered out of the Hall, Peter began to focus really har. He tried to remember every hallway, every corner, and any landmarks he could pick out (E.I., the portrait of the fruits). He did this until- 

“We’re here!” exclaimed James, grinning. “Did you get all that, Pete?” 

“I think so.” 

“Oh, good!” An overweight man greeted them by popping into the doorway and scaring Peter to death. Well, not literally. That would be an interesting way to go, “Hogwarts Student Scared to Death by Friendly Professor”. That would be an amazing story, that would. 

“So nice to meet you! I’m Professor Slughorn. New Gryffindors, I presume?” continued Slughorn, glancing shrewdly at the boys’ ties. 

“Yes, sir.” answered Remus politely. “Are you the Potions master?” 

 

 

“I am indeed, young master! And who might you boys be?” 

“I’m Remus Lupin-” 

“I’m Peter Pettigrew-” 

“I’m Sirius Black-” 

“And I’m James Potter.” finished James, with a dramatic flourish 

“James Potter, eh? Wasn’t your dad the one who made-” 

“Yes.” interrupted James, turning bright red. 

Slughorn appeared not to notice James’ embarresment and nodded. “Excellent, excellent. And you are Sirius Black? Am I right in thinking that you are a descendant of the esteemed Headmaster Phineas Nigellus?” 

“Umm... Yes sir.” replied Sirius, looking confused. 

“Fantastic! I look forward to having you boys in my class!” Slughorn seemed oblivious to Remus and Peter. “Won’t you come in? You boys are early, we have a few minutes yet before class.” 

The boys trooped into the dungeon class room. Upon Slughorn’s the walls were photos of famous people, some had Slughorn in them, some not. There were many shelves lining the walls of the classroom, most of which held vials filled with odd colored liquids. The remaining shelves held what appeared to be an assortment of fine wines. 

 

“Sit, sit.” said Slughorn, waving his hand at the seats that looked as if they cost as much apiece as Peter’s entire wardrobe. 

Slughorn asked Remus a few questions, mostly out of politeness at first, but he seemed more interested after Remus told him the correct way to brew the Draught of Peace, which from Peter’s understanding must have been a complicated potion. 

After a few minutes, Slughorn asked Peter a few questions, but he quickly got bored. 

A little bit later, other students began to trickle in, taking seats where they were available. Slughorn repeated the questioning process. Peter noticed James scowling when Slughorn questioned Snape, who had been Sorted into Slytherin. 

 

The rest of the day passed in a blur, with Transfiguration, Charms, and Defense Against the Dark Arts flying by. Most of the teachers were nice and gave minimal or no homework, (why was it called home work? They weren’t at home.) except McGonagall, who gave them a three-page essay on Vanishing Objects. 

As they day ended, Peter flumped onto his bed. He had, besides his Transfiguration stuff, a small quiz on ‘Wingardium Leviosa’ and had to produce a vial of Sleep Draught. Deciding to procrastinate, he wandered down to the common room, where his new dorm-mates were chatting. 

“Hey, Pete!” said James, looking up from his paper. “Want to join in on the homework party?” 

“Uh, I don’t really want to...” Peter’s voice trailed off. James was the last person who he expected to intentionally finish his homework promptly. 

“Oh, it’s not that bad.” James waved off Peter’s feeble objection. 

 

 

“I didn’t really understand the Transfiguration concept.” admitted Peter. 

“That’s no big deal! Here, go grab your book and I’ll help you with it.” 

Feeling a bit more optimistic about life in general, (but especially schoolwork), Peter grabbed his stuff and hurried back to the common room, where the other three boys were sitting on the couch, with quills and paper strewn about them. 

James scooched over, giving Peter some room in between him and the left arm of the couch, which Peter’s slightly overweight body filled easily. The four boys were now slightly squished, but still happy to sit together. Well, except Sirius, who looked slightly uncomfortable being squashed between James and Remus. 

 

Pulling out the Transfiguration book, James began to help Peter with his essay. James never told him exactly what to write, but he did point out some important details that Peter would have otherwise missed. 

All in all, Peter felt pretty good about his homework status, and was thoroughly enjoying the hot chocolate that Remus had procured. 

“Where did you get this, anyway?” Peter asked, sipping off the whipped cream. 

“The kitchens.” replied Remus with a shrug. 

Sirius, who had been uncharacteristically quiet during the squish-fest, nearly spat out his marshmallow. “You got them where?” he choked. 

 

 

“Do you have a problem with that?” 

“So I am drinking stolen goods?” 

“Oh, it’s not stolen.” here Remus paused, sipping his coco. “The house-elves gave it to me. They also were kind enough to include that lovely tea tray you see before you.” 

“I knew I liked you.” said Sirius, grinning. 

“Enough about that. Can you remember how you got to the kitchens?” interrupted James. ‘We can add it to the map!” 

Remus burst out laughing. “Actually, I do.” he said, wiping a tear from his eye. “Funny story, really.” 

“Well then, tell it!” said James impatiently. “Tell it!’ 

“Well,” began Remus, “I was going to just find a teacher, you know ask them where I could find some hot chocolate, and I saw a portrait.” 

“So? There must be millions of portraits in this place!” 

“Right, well, this one was of a bunch of fruits.” retorted Remus, as if that explained it. “And so, wandering these vast halls, I thought, ‘Gee, it’s kinda weird that they just have a fruit picture amidst all the famous people.’ And so I did the only logical thing.” 

 

 

  
“Which was...” ventured Peter. 

“Tickle the pear.” said Remus. 

A shocked silence ensued. Apparently, Peter wasn’t the only one who had figured that Remus was the sane one of the gang. 

Suddenly, pandemonium broke out. 

“You did what?” 

“Why would you-” 

“What possessed you too-” 

A moment later, Sirius’ voice rang out among the others, saying; 

“With all due respect, are you off your rocker?!” 

At this point the boys lost all abandon and laughed until they were short of breath. 

Once they pulled themselves together, James pulled out the map. 

 

 

  
“Ready?” 

 

By now, Peter had mastered the stairs’ movements, so they added that in. Remus applied an animation charm (he had read up on them during lunch break and practiced them quietly in History of Magic.) As Peter rattled off places in the castle, Sirius’s hand swept over the large piece of parchment, creating a surprisingly detailed map. 

After what seemed like only minutes, Davy Gudgeon stalked in, looking angrily at the scattered students. 

“All right, you lot, time for bed. It’s eight o’clock, lights out.” he declared, stomping around the Common Room, scattering papers as he went. 

Peter pulled all his stuff into a pile and slipped upstairs before Davy came his way. Remus, James, and Sirius followed suit, with James grabbing the Map and placing it on top if his school supplies. 

Once they reached the top of the stairs, Peter asked, “What was that about?” 

“Oh! I forgot to mention, I also saw his girlfriend break up with him when I was getting the coco.” Remus answered. 

The boys started giggling again. 

 

 

 

Remus pulled his class schedule out from his stack of homework. “I’m going to tape this to the wall there,” he said, pointing to the wall space across from the beds. “That way we can all see it. Anyone have any Spello-Tape?” 

Peter was able to produce a roll from his trunk, which Remus gladly took. 

 

As the boys were lying in their beds, James’ voice came from the dark. 

“We should have a Dorm name.” 

“A what now?” asked Sirius, sitting up. Peter could see his silhouette outlined against the window. 

“A dorm name,” answered James, “Like a club name, but we’re the only members. We can tape suggestions on the wall.” 

“Great idea.” grumped Remus, who, despite the early bedtime, wanted to sleep. “Can we talk about it in the morning?” 

“Alright fine.” said Sirius, and a silence filled the room.


	4. James

James 

 

The first week at Hogwarts had been one of the best in James life. He was enjoying his classes (however much he pretended not to, not wishing to be thought a nerd), particularly Transfiguration. 

His Dorm Name idea had gone down surprisingly well, and they had agreed to look over the names plastered all over the wall after breakfast. 

Only one thing seemed wrong, and that was Remus. 

The quiet, bookish boy that he had met on the train was amazing, but over the past couple days he had pulled into himself, looking stressed and barely eating. The goof who tickled a pear was gone, replaced by a worried boy who was looking more tired and preoccupied by the day. 

James was worried, but he decided not to push the subject. He supposed whatever Remus already had on his plate was bad enough without someone he had only met a few days ago prying. 

On a lighter note, the first Quidditch lesson was on Monday. 

James had a broomstick, but his parents had stopped him from breaking the rules and bringing it, much to James’ disappointment. He was an excellent flyer, barring the fact that he had never gone higher than twenty feet. 

Sliding onto the bench next to Sirius, James helped himself to a couple pancakes. The pancakes were ridiculously fluffy. Apparently, house-elves were good cooks. 

Having finished his breakfast, James poked Sirius. “Hey, you have the list mate?” 

“Hmm?” queried Sirius, mouth full of oatmeal. “Oh, that list. Yeah.” He pulled it out of his robe pocket. “Let it be said that some of these names are fairly stupid.” 

“Such as?” Remus spoke for the first time all morning. 

“’James and the Potters’, “Dorm Seven’” read Sirius. 

“Well we are in dorm seven.” pointed out Peter. 

“We might not be next year.” Sirius retorted. “Umm... that is...if we still hang out...” 

“’Course we will!” James was astounded that Sirius didn’t realize that he was his best friend. “Why on earth wouldn’t we be?” 

“Sorry I- I just didn’t- didn’t realize- realize you-” 

“You’re my best friend, mate, of course I will want to hang out with you!” 

“What about me and Pete?” asked Remus, looking bemused. 

James thought about that for a moment. “You can be my co-best friends, because for some reason you are only allowed to have one best friend.” Pleased with his answer, he poured some maple syrup onto his bacon. 

“That is disgusting.” said Peter, pulling a face. “Why would you eat that?” 

“Are you kidding me?” James retorted. “Bacon and syrup is a wonderful thing that must have been created by Merlin himself!” 

“Anyway, what are we up to today?” Remus interjected, trying (and succeeding) to defuse a breakfast war. 

“What do you mean?” asked Sirius and James simultaneously, mouths full of syrup-y breakfast foods. 

“Well, you two were discussing pranks on the train on Wednesday, so I assumed you were going to wind up being marauders of some sort-” 

“Brilliant, Remus!” Sirius interrupted. “Absolutely brilliant!” 

James marveled at how fast Sirius had gone from shy and stuttering about being friends back to the unabashed boy he knew. 

“I- what?” Remus asked, looking bewildered. “What did I-” 

“Marauders!” Sirius exclaimed, looking expectantly at his dorm mates. “The perfect dorm name! A slightly mysterious and archaic flair, but modern enough to be understood by the un-initiated!” 

James watched Remus in amusement. Remus had buried his face in his hands, then jolted upward because he accidentally stuck his elbow into his hash browns. As Remus wiped hash browns off his arm, he sighed and rolled his eyes at Sirius. James decided to back Sirius up on this one, though it may cost him his hot chocolate this afternoon. 

“He’s right!” James said, waving his arms in a gesture of grandeur. “It’s fantastic! All in favor?” 

He raised his own hand, closely followed by Sirius, then Peter, and Remus. As soon as he finished cleaning the hash browns off his arm, that is. 

“It’s unanimomuos!” he cried, then grabbed the whipped cream can and poured some directly into his mouth. 

“Do you mean: ‘Unanimous’?” Remus quieried. 

“Does it matter?” asked Sirius lazily, as James passed him the whipped cream. 

“It does if you care about pronunciation.” 

“I do not, and so it doesn’t matter.” answered James, licking his lips to get rid of his whipped cream moustache. 

Sirius swallowed his and passed the can to Peter, who accidentally squirted it all over his face, much to the other boys’ amusement. After cleaning himself up, Peter passed the can to Remus. 

Remus simply sighed and took the whipped cream, the squirted a respectable amount into his mouth and swallowed. He hesitated for a minute, then said: 

“I have to leave later.” 

James was shocked. “Why?” 

“Uh- my –uh- my mother is. . . sick. She’s sick.” 

The way he said it seemed off to James, but maybe he was just upset about his mother’s illness. 

“Oh.” he said, not knowing quite what to say. “Okay. Wh-When do you think you’ll be able to come back?” 

“Um. . . Her- her. . . episodes. . . usually last only a night or two. Maybe Monday?” 

“What was the whipped cream about?” asked Peter. James supposed he was trying to dissolve the tension. 

“To seal the Dorm name, of course.” interjected Sirius. 

“Oh.” Peter thought about that. “Sort of like the Indians’ Peace Pipe?” 

“What’s that?” Sirius and James asked at the same time. 

James sat in rapt fascination as Peter fumbled with his words, trying to explain Native American culture, one piece of information leading to another. 

“Why do they need a peace pipe?” 

“Well- well first they don’t really need it anymore, that was more of a history reference- but they used it after the stopped fighting, to, you know, make it official- or to make a law, or at celebrations between tribes.” 

“What did they war about?” 

Several explanations later, James glanced over to where Remus was sitting, except- 

“Hey, where’d Remus go?” he asked. 

Sirius scanned the Great Hall, then said, “I don’t know. . . Probably to catch whatever ride he’s taking back home.” 

As the remaining three Marauders wandered back up to the Gryffindor dorms, they decided not to work on the map without Remus. 

Now that they were missing their common sense, James and Sirius drew up multiple- albeit stupid - plans for pranks. 

“We can put a large fondue pot under the Slytherin table!” 

“Where are we going to get that?” 

“Curse it.” 

After several hours of this tom-foolery, the boys decided to work on homework. Piling onto their favorite couch, they noticed how much differently they had to arrange themselves to make the proper amount of squish. Remus’s absence definitely had a reasonable impact upon the lives of the residents of dorm seven. 

James pulled out his Transfiguration book. They had been studying where vanished objects went, and it really was a gripping subject. No one really knew for sure, but some of the greatest wizarding minds had come up reasonable theories, and the widely accepted one was ‘Into nothing; that is, non-being.’ 

When McGonagall had covered the topic, she said that would be the expected answer on the test, but if they wanted to get extra credit, they could write up a brief essay, no longer than a foot, presenting another idea. James liked her. 

As Peter, James, and Sirius used the bathroom (which was equipped with two sinks, one toilet stall, and one shower area), Sirius asked: 

“What do you suppose Remus’s mother has?” 

The question hung in the air as thick as the steam from Peter’s shower. Now that James thought about it, what did cause a fit of sickness of only one night?


	5. Remus

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Remus POV.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would like it said that until this day I had no idea how to spell sandwiches.

Remus woke up staring at the white hospital wing ceiling. 

Last night had been bad, as if the wolf inside him picked up on his nervousness and fed off it. 

Gingerly he sat up, looking around him. The room was sterile, and someone had pulled the curtains closed around him, for which Remus was thankful. 

Remus glanced down at his hands. There were a few scratches on them, but nothing major. They could easily be explained as really deep cat scratches. 

His arms were another matter. 

A deep gash had gone from elbow to shoulder, but the nurse had mostly healed it, so now it looked more like a nasty scar. Remus wondered if he had just gained another life-long mark. 

Remus heard footsteps. The nurse poked here head in and said, “Have some chocolate.” 

“I- what?” 

“Chocolate.” and with that she came in carrying a small chocolate boulder. She chipped off a piece with a chisel and handed it to Remus. 

Remus took a small bite of the food, then shoved the whole thing into his mouth. He knew it wasn’t exactly polite, but he was starving. He hadn’t eaten since breakfast the day before, and even then, it had only been a couple of pieces of bacon. Nerves. He had been doing this since just before his fifth birthday and yet he still had nerves. 

After simply resting for a few minutes, the nurse, who had introduced herself as Madam Pomfrey, told Remus he could leave if he wanted to. 

Remus knew that he had to get up seven flights of stairs, several corridors, and through the Common Room without being seen. He had some oversized jumpers he could pull on. Fortunately, it was cool enough in Northern Scotland to warrant such clothing. 

Remus rolled out of bed, testing his strength. He was pretty sure he’d be able to make it, provided he took a few breaks. 

“You go easy.” commented the nurse, hovering in the doorway. “I don’t want to be seeing you in here any more often than I have to.” 

Remus smiled and nodded. That was how he got by, smiling and nodding. Other kids at the park: smile and nod. Toddler telling you about his adventures with a caterpillar: smile and nod. Anything else and parents would swoop in and drag their children away. No one knew Remus's secret, but there were rumors. 

It was early, and whenever Remus passed a window, he could see the sun just beginning to rise. 

Limping up the stairs was painful, but Remus managed. After every flight he stopped for breath. So far, he had met no one, save Mrs. Norris, but that was alright. He had tried to pet her, but she swatted at him. 

Remus briefly wondered if, since her name was Mrs. Norris, the mangy cat had, at one point, had a husband. He decided not to dwell on the thought. 

At last he came to the portrait of the Fat Lady. “Bow truckles.” he muttered, and the portrait swung to the side just enough for Remus’s slight frame to slip through. 

Remus snuck up the dorm stair, then winced as the door creaked. However, none of the sleeping forms moved, much to his relief. 

But something was off. Remus didn’t notice until he had pulled on a particularly large jumper, but when he did, it was so incredibly obvious that Remus wondered how he had missed it. 

Rather than hanging down and giving each boy their relative privacy, the curtains had been lifted between the four-posters, creating a large tent. But why- 

“SURPRISE!” 

Remus nearly jumped out of his skin when Sirius sat up. He was followed almost immediately by James, then Peter, who had gotten himself tangled in a blanket. 

“We thought you might be upset, so we made you this!” Peter squeaked excitedly as he thrashed his arms about to free himself. “It has pillows and Sirius and James got hot cocoa, and I found some of your books, and-and-” 

Remus felt as if he was going to cry. These boys had known him for all of five days, and they were willing to do this sort of thing for him. 

“You okay?” Sirius looked worried. “If you don’t like, we can take it down, or-” 

Remus ran over and hugged him. He then proceeded to start crying. 

Remus felt Sirius freeze, then awkwardly pat him. Suddenly another pair of arms was wrapped around him, and then another. He looked up through tearful eyes at James and Peter, who had joined in on what was now a group hug. 

Something that Peter had said registered with Remus. 

“Did you say, ‘some of your books’?” he asked. 

“We. . .may have rooted through your bookbag.” James admitted. “In our defense, we were worried you would be upset.” 

“We were also right.” noted Sirius. “Another thing, I have not had access to a restroom this fine morning. Could you lovely gentlemen allow me an exit?” 

Peter rolled off the bed laughing, and James and Remus hurriedly detached themselves. Sirius bowed and walked quickly off the bathroom. 

The boys opted to stay in the dorm that day. It was a dreary and rainy Sunday anyway, and Remus had a few homework assignments to catch up on. 

It was a peaceful morning, and by lunch Remus had finished his homework and helped Peter wrap his up. 

James stretched and looked up from where he had been flipping through the Transfiguration textbook. “Ready mate?” he said to Peter. 

Peter nodded so enthusiastically Remus thought his head might pop off. “Alright then.” James grinned, then looked at Sirius. “Is he asleep?” 

“Has been for about an hour now.” Remus said. 

“That’s right about when I was talking to you guys about Quidditch.” James said, frowning. 

“I’m sure there’s no connection.” 

James pulled a face and chucked a pillow at him. Remus ducked and laughed. It felt good to have friends. 

“Anyway, what are you two off to?” asked Remus as he watched James and Peter pulled on some robes right over their pajamas. 

“To get some lunch.” Peter explained. “I’m starving.” 

“Hi Starving, I’m James.” 

“Shut up.” Peter giggled. “Anyway, we’re gonna go get some sandwiches.” 

“We’re gonna grab some grub.” James commented for effect. 

A muffled groan came from where Sirius was napping. Mutters followed it. 

James motioned for quiet, then crept over to Sirius. “What was that mate?” he whispered. 

Remus leaned forward in anticipation, but he almost fell off his bed, so he sat back. 

“I said, stuff it Potter.” this time, Sirius’s voice rang clear. James started, the waved a hand in Sirius’s face. Sirius didn’t move. James tried a couple other things, but Sirius didn’t budge. James looked back where Remus and Peter were watching in anticipation. 

“He’s out!” exclaimed James in glee. “He can’t tell a thing that I’m doing to him!” 

Oh no. thought Remus as James tip-toed over to Sirius’s bookbag, where he kept his drawing materials. 

James drew out a marker that Peter ad given to Sirius to introduce him to Muggle art. James strode back to the pile of blankets that was Sirius and uncapped the marker. 

Oh no. Remus thought again. 

James leaned down and slowly, painstakingly, drew a moustache on Sirius’s upper lip. The tickling sensation was enough to make Sirius snort and move his head, but nothing more. 

James replaced the marker and then leaned over Sirius once more. This time he clapped his hands in Sirius’s face, as hard and loud as he could. Sirius shot bolt upright. 

“Hullo there.” James rocked back on his heels, flashing his lop-sided grin at Sirius. 

“What’d you wake me for?” 

“Lunch.” 

“Oh.” Sirius then proceeded to pull on his robes as well, again without removing his pajamas. Peter, Sirius, and James strolled out of the room. 

Remus considered following them, but he didn’t really feel like dressing himself in anything other than the pajama pants and jumper he was wearing. When the others did return, however, it was with a veritable feast. 

James was carrying a tray with four glasses of pumpkin juice, Sirius had a platter of tarts, and Peter was struggling under a load of sandwiches. 

“We grabbed the grub!” said James as he carefully lowered the tray he was bearing to the floor. 

Sirius face-palmed, and Remus noted that he still had his moustache. He wondered when he would notice. 

The boy shoveled food into their mouths, then realized that they had enough food for supper as well. They opted to work on the map, which had almost all of the artwork finished. Remus had been researching the charms that had been used on the paintings that littered the walls of the castle, since he figured that would at least get them started. 

Night fell before they knew it, and the soft patter of rain against their windows provided a relaxing background noise. 

The peace was broken by Davey Gudgeon’s brash voice echoing through the dorms. “Get to bed you lot!” 

“First call for the bathroom!” Peter called, scrambling to his feet. 

“Dibs!” shouted Sirius, sprinting ahead of Peter and blocking his way. 

“Hey!” Peter objected. “I called it first!” 

“‘Dibs’ is more official.” 

“But-” 

“He’s right Pete.” James said, backing Sirius up. Peter looked to Remus for help, but Remus just smiled ruefully and shook his head. 

Peter sighed and let Sirius enter unhindered. Almost as soon as Sirius entered the bathroom, however- 

“POTTER!”


End file.
